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Parents of Intellectually Handicapped Children — How they areTold

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 February 2024

Toni E. Meek
Toni E. Meek*
Affiliation:
Broadmeadows Family Services
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Parents invariably experience great emotional distress when they are informedthat their child is intellectually handicapped. From working with parents ofintellectually handicapped children, it appears that they experience moreanxiety with their child than do parents of normal children, and often havespecial needs. These needs may vary from requiring assistance to adjust to theirchild’s condition, to advice and guidance about how to manage theirchild. It is apparent from talking with parents about their experiences withtheir intellectually handicapped child, that often their needs have not or haveonly superficially been met by professionals. Some cases have been adequatelydealt with, however, in general there appear to be discrepancies in theavailability of assistance for parents of intellectually handicapped children.There is a need to bring into focus the situation as it now exists for parentswhen they are told of their child’s handicap. The time when parents aretold of their child’s handicap is a crucial one for parents, and perhapsnot enough is being done to help parents at this time.

Type
Research Article
Information
Children Australia , Volume 6 , Issue 2 , Winter 1981 , pp. 6 - 11
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1981

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